TALLAHASSEE | Nearly two weeks after Hurricane Irma crashed through the state, thousands of Floridians were still in the dark as estimates of damage in nearly all parts of the peninsula continued to escalate.

Country music is sacred. Born on the dirt roads that run through Tulsa to Texas, from Arkansas back out to Bakersfield, the music came right from the struggle of the common man. It was translated by Merle, Waylon and Willie and came to us free over the radio. It was real.